埃德蒙顿华人社区-Edmonton China

 找回密码
 注册
查看: 1202|回复: 1

丰田承认换踏板不一定能全部解决加速问题

[复制链接]
鲜花(1) 鸡蛋(0)
发表于 2010-2-24 15:48 | 显示全部楼层 |阅读模式
老杨团队,追求完美;客户至上,服务到位!
By LARRY MARGASAK and KEN THOMAS
* |1 r  _1 v3 N) YWashington (AP) -- The president of Toyota's U.S.
5 U0 H3 F# K4 x5 Soperations acknowledged to skeptical lawmakers on Tuesday that
. H. i# S! R! D1 @$ F  Xthe company's recalls of millions of its cars may "not totally"" c+ P: m  m. ^9 [8 \
solve the problem of sudden and dangerous acceleration.! m; n" t" y0 U( V  b6 T2 V
"We are vigilant and we continue to look for potential% A+ `9 }8 @$ X0 e: N3 I
causes," Toyota's James Lentz told a congressional panel.
; o; m$ c' V; f. A! a# [However, he repeated his company's position that unexpected0 Q' V! ], P- w2 k
acceleration in some of the company's most popular cars and2 b/ K6 g) p' F: e$ _- T( H- ^
trucks was caused by one of two problems -- misplaced floor1 V0 d" Q* w* a6 l: |8 H
mats and sticking accelerator pedals.4 ?- m# w4 d7 P0 V& H7 g' z
He insisted electronic systems connected to the gas pedal( s5 u5 I9 d5 e0 E$ N
and fuel line did not contribute to the problem, drawing sharp" |0 F9 N/ H1 t
criticism from lawmakers who said such a possibility should be# B4 s2 W( n* E  Y  ~
further explored -- and from a tearful woman driver who could) S4 n" Y9 |1 K: F" ?1 S- Z& |
not stop her runaway Lexus.; c" o6 D" E& \. \
"Shame on you, Toyota," Rhonda Smith, of Sevierville,6 r* f# {' f) ?2 o. w7 O' ^
Tenn., said at a congressional hearing. Then she added a second
- F! M+ D- `1 M"shame on you" directed at federal highway safety regulators.4 _9 N3 z" u4 k7 E0 T* Q
Texas Republican Rep. Joe Barton cautioned his colleagues
* G- o( V: f( {  H- iearly in the hearing against conducting a "witch hunt" and said. A/ _1 o: @( @1 p5 g- }
"We don't want to just assume automatically that Toyota has. s  f& b* G# j6 v1 u; S
done something wrong and has tried to cover it up." But midway
# L5 O9 T5 y2 w: U% }+ cthrough Lentz's testimony, Barton said of Toyota's' r0 E2 T- q% K
investigation of the problems: "In my opinion, it's a sham."$ f4 _! L8 w4 I$ v5 M
Lentz said the company had not completely ruled out an
- g& ?: O2 f: _6 D3 I5 gelectronics malfunction and was still investigating causes of) y; J$ G# N8 \) K" o! c
the sudden acceleration. Still, "We have not found a6 b  f1 O9 P) r; h5 G/ H
malfunction" in the electronics of any of the cars at issue, he4 }! Z" a: x6 _
said.
* B. d! [. g1 k6 m& HAs to Smith's harrowing story, "I'm embarrassed for what
6 R7 g# |  n( }; A  Xhappened," Lentz said. "I want her and her husband to feel safe! {* h& Z3 @5 @* G# Q6 {9 n
about driving our products," Lentz said.: z+ U0 S% }! g% T- U
Three congressional panels are investigating Toyota's9 \" h1 l) [' @( E3 G( e% N4 R
problems, which affect a huge number of Americans. Toyota has
* b1 f: B( l/ Y% Mrecalled some 8.5 million vehicles worldwide -- more than 6
: c9 U, s( Y! {- e4 ~: kmillion in the United States -- since last fall because of
! K, E1 a8 M. u" V5 Y# gunintended acceleration problems in multiple models and braking$ b  D* g( L5 U* W8 i. g+ r5 v/ M
issues in the Prius hybrid. It is also investigating steering
# U- y. R9 K% i, {concerns in Corollas. People with Toyotas have complained of
/ p: d# A7 |: Q3 ~% A  ptheir vehicles speeding out of control despite efforts to slow
! Q" s* n1 U) ^) N5 k; idown, sometimes resulting in deadly crashes. The government has, i7 p1 i; ?4 Q  _  l( r: t
received complaints of 34 deaths linked to sudden acceleration0 T3 R1 B0 i* y# v0 c. `2 G  E' |
of Toyota vehicles since 2000.7 y- ]' @$ s3 [0 g
Lentz, who choked up while discussing the death of his own$ R" U, ?" W6 j9 B* e: m0 G
brother more than 20 years ago in a car accident, said he1 k  n8 ]/ _/ z5 Z1 @; L
understood the pain.  X" s0 t9 j- f$ T
"I know what those families go through," he said.! z1 m! @: F7 a; M. h6 v# Q
Lentz has said in the past that he was confident Toyota's! i5 z3 i: F  b& s7 B  V! y
fixes on the recalled vehicles would correct the problems.: f: r. y; i: S9 Y
But when pressed by Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman
# \0 K# Q- L; A. o% _, wHenry Waxman, D-Calif., on whether the two recalls Toyota put8 j" Z& ]# k- I/ e4 y8 b% ?
in place to deal with the issue would completely solve it," c; P' |( u) @+ c9 z9 A
Lentz replied: "Not totally."& a/ `4 _' n2 f' \9 F5 M
Still, he said chances of unintended accelerations were% q3 l4 V$ j2 ^! k& }, ^
"very, very slim" once the recall was complete. Lentz also said3 t3 Y: @1 u* {$ f; G( h
Toyota was putting in new brakes that can override the gas" G, L! `0 E3 n. A+ \; T$ V( e
pedal on almost all of its new vehicles and a majority of its  b2 r" V6 p+ l# L
vehicles already on the road.
  ~/ K( M$ P: d6 f5 v8 @Meanwhile, Toyota president Akio Toyoda, who will testify5 ]& h/ `9 W8 ]5 |
before a separate panel on Wednesday, said he took "full$ v& k" g9 p; q1 D
responsibility" for the uncertainty felt by Toyota owners and8 A4 }2 Z" n( E& ^- z
offered his condolences to a San Diego, Calif., family who were
$ w) V" }$ ]" V: v2 A; Q( q; C4 Pkilled in late August, reigniting interest in the problems.& d: X! C" y% S0 W: S/ x
"I will do everything in my power to ensure that such a
3 U  j$ t. G+ @; D/ Y1 ctragedy never happens again," Toyoda said in prepared testimony  c& k+ N8 B6 p9 a- c
for Wednesday's hearing to the House Government Oversight
: g+ N# b7 s$ H! F1 H# f5 aCommittee. "My name is on every car. You have my personal# i! j% x8 q8 m" r$ _
commitment that Toyota will work vigorously and unceasingly to
" L7 y' C. R4 k' y' ~9 q2 R8 Irestore the trust of our customers."- [) }- ^% O. \$ Z
Lawmakers heard a brief, but riveting, deion from
3 }) e+ w0 _9 v7 q- WSmith, the Tennessee woman whose Toyota-made Lexus suddenly/ C+ r4 z( {" Y. T  l) R
zoomed to 100 miles per hour as she tried to get it to stop --
/ w) n. T: m5 Ishifting to neutral, trying to throw the car into reverse and
+ z6 p: W! q, Ahitting the emergency brake. Finally, her car slowed enough+ b4 w6 s( Q7 k7 X* H
that she was able to pull it off the road onto the median and
0 S! M0 y0 K) D( }$ x: Qturn off the engine.
( [# \: v  Y/ X% d5 q  f9 d% zFighting back tears, she described her nightmare ride of/ d0 S- r1 M, w
October 2006, calling it "a near death experience.". B8 X6 g. m9 o7 Q% r% ?
"After six miles, God intervened" and slowed the car, she
  O1 D; u) {# |! U/ ?& M6 V/ p( ksaid. She added that it took a long time for Toyota to respond3 y1 ^0 i' _7 h" f% Y) N$ Q6 @
to her complaints.1 C* t+ o- e5 O% a; O: a
In an often contentious full day of testimony, lawmakers/ |* P1 Z! N6 F) }  ]  ]# W, ~
returned again and again to the question of whether electronic1 r6 j, ^% e6 Q, [, ^0 R  T" s% p6 X: O
malfunctions may have contributed to the speeding cars.
( z$ v2 y0 S5 Z& X  y# V7 q* O"We are confident that no problems exist with the electric
4 v( C9 s4 s8 n) D3 v* P- E) z' ythrottle control system in our vehicles," Lentz said. He cited  J. Y2 t  A; s% I& `
"fail-safe mechanisms" in the cars that were designed to shut' O  E( ~" z3 H
off or reduce engine power "in the event of a system failure."
# r9 g+ V! h( |4 ]Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told the panel in1 i% ?7 y# F0 b5 d
prepared testimony that possible electronics problems were9 d1 z3 {: [' Q2 a) `! F
being looked into by his agency. He said the company's recalls
! n0 m8 S: u- v+ T2 k; p( Awere important steps but "we don't maintain that they answer7 _2 W0 v' u+ X3 B6 r
every question."2 `  L8 g) R: t5 A- ~/ j9 i
Toyota hired a consulting firm to analyze whether: B+ j, c* U8 ?
electronic problems could cause unintended acceleration. The; W  r2 H& }" d# X# D( T! l
firm, Exponent Inc., found no link between the two. But
/ I$ B4 K; m, M4 mcommittee investigators said the testing studied only a small6 x4 s3 O8 F% i" R
number of vehicles
  C0 D5 f+ z% I8 C: E. e8 T$ jTracking down an electrical problem can be far more: L: U' ^; O+ I7 J7 p' _
difficult, expensive and time-consuming than finding a
2 a8 B$ h( \. }* d6 w- xmechanical problem. Electrical problems can have more than one
& Y# m) y; y! |6 i  @source, and they can come from inside or outside the car.
4 A( e0 y$ }  [1 ]Mechanical problems often leave clues such as physical damage,
* j' X: n% d4 Owhere electronic troubles can be hidden in software or leave no
4 E# E  B* {/ e+ }2 Q( qtrace at all.
% W: g/ e- o9 U. t1 L& e9 R0 FHouse investigators who reviewed Toyota's customer call
+ s4 s1 x# j8 f; \database found that 70 percent of the complaints of sudden! n: t( E# l& N/ C5 x# ~
acceleration were for vehicles that are not subject to the
1 }& s; E: M  Arecalls over floor mats or sticky pedals.0 c: }: n1 }1 P% e: t% B% M2 l
Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., chairman of the subcommittee,* ^4 A" O/ B3 I. c' ^
said Toyota "misled the American public by saying that they and
. _' _( Q# b1 `* G$ N0 p! wother independent sources had thoroughly analyzed the0 c& W# |/ M5 r4 ], Q) k' x  Y# b
electronics systems and eliminated electronics as a possible7 _4 L0 ~1 m  `6 G& T2 }3 }
cause of sudden unintended acceleration when, in fact, the only% o& x! |9 |8 g9 f; P1 c( m
such review was a flawed study conducted by a company retained# L$ K# g- L  O
by Toyota's lawyers."% T1 E6 o; X' @8 Z; N) u0 p- @
Lentz apologized anew for the company's slow handling of: K( z8 g; C: z- P
problems. "We have not lived up to the high standards our$ w8 l" F0 c: ]# _2 j( W" R# P
customers and the public have come to expect from Toyota," he
8 n; K) q- N! D0 j3 p) E* Isaid.& Q8 A2 W/ G7 A5 t
"Put simply, it has taken us too long to come to grips with
4 k- Z! T! _  l# u/ }$ |a rare but serious set of safety issues, despite all of our! |- \0 }6 g' e) @8 }: }  `# v
good faith efforts," said Lentz, president and chief operating
. N& u, D+ i. bofficer of Toyota Motor Sales USA. Inc.
* a9 Y: r; }' v# P4 S! ]Separately, among hundreds of Toyota dealers lobbying  p& S! y2 Z6 e& g, _" Q$ A' ]
members of Congress Tuesday, there seemed to be widespread
; @9 @% x/ J, r7 v5 L$ r  Z8 _rancor toward a federal government they view as picking on the6 D8 J! b  h" i# _# C
automaker, at least in part because of the government's
0 c. l6 J+ Z4 D% Y+ B) @9 _investment of billions of dollars in General Motors and
$ Z$ d5 [4 Z5 n4 W& V8 t" T! W. UChrysler.
, D0 H2 k5 w- z. M. ~4 ?$ ["That's hard for me as a citizen to understand why my tax$ c7 e* B6 y: \" W4 f( g
dollars are going in that direction," Paul Atkinson, a. D9 B' O/ C6 u3 V  Q) x$ }
Houston-area Toyota dealer, said at a news conference that also
, F! k; i: R4 ^- _2 @served as a pep rally for the visiting dealers. "To compete0 d/ e+ U2 K2 Q; M3 O
with the government as an individual entrepreneur is pretty
, h: j% G) }: Ltough."
& E. \/ Y3 q: [---
  ]( `  l# R4 MAssociated Press writers Alan Fram, Stephen Manning and Tom
8 g: J! s" _) r0 Q6 _3 Q3 QRaum in Washington and Tom Krisher in Detroit contributed to
& c1 h, {' F# x5 l' \% xthis story.' a2 T7 x, @7 _& w7 `, _. k

- x. E5 |3 N7 I1 R-0- Feb/23/2010 21:04 GMT
鲜花(7) 鸡蛋(1)
发表于 2010-2-27 22:40 | 显示全部楼层
本来踏板就不是什问题的关键,recall也只不过是对大众的心理治疗罢了
您需要登录后才可以回帖 登录 | 注册

本版积分规则

联系我们|小黑屋|手机版|Archiver|埃德蒙顿中文网

GMT-7, 2025-7-22 23:33 , Processed in 0.112132 second(s), 11 queries , Gzip On, APC On.

Powered by Discuz! X3.4

Copyright © 2001-2021, Tencent Cloud.

快速回复 返回顶部 返回列表